Collaborative Research: Fast and efficient phase-change photonics using low-dimensional materials

该项目旨在展示一种同时利用相变和二维材料的独特特性的有源光学器件。目前，有源光学器件是在需要恒定电源的平台上实现的，这在具有零星调制的光学应用中是低效的，例如基于光的数据存储。考虑到相变材料的稳定状态允许零静态功率操作，我们已经探索了可逆而稳定的光学响应作为解决这一问题的方法。这些特性及其纳米制造的多功能性导致了从成像到片上光学计算等应用中前所未有的器件性能。然而，这种应用依赖于为近红外光谱（电信发生的地方）优化的相变材料。相比之下，其他几种经典技术和量子技术将受益于更接近可见光谱的调制。该项目旨在通过开发新型相变材料及其控制机制——微加热器来填补这一空白，这种材料在可见光下是透明的，并且与任何衬底兼容。为了制造微加热器，该项目将探索石墨烯等二维材料的独特特性，石墨烯是透明的，可以快速加热和冷却。该项目基于相变和二维材料的快速高效平台将广泛适用于超表面、光学滤波器、新型计算架构和可重构（量子）光子学等技术。本项目旨在探索使用由低维材料组成的微加热器作为一种高速高效控制低损耗可重构相变光子器件的方法，用于硅以外的平台。相变材料，如Ge2Sb2Te5， Sb2Se3等，由于其折射率的快速，戏剧性，非易失性和可逆变化，特别有希望用于可重构光学器件。用于存储和计算的可重构智能窗口、超表面和光子器件的实验演示重新点燃了人们对这些合金的兴趣。然而，探索光学相变器件的电气控制的工作仅限于波长为1.2 μ m的光学不透明平台，与硅以外的光子平台不兼容，并且加热和冷却速度慢，限制了它们的开关速度和能量效率。因此，为了满足这些关键需求，本项目旨在1)利用超快二维微加热器的基板无关平台开发控制相变材料的新解决方案，2)通过开发新的相变合金并系统研究其失效机制来提高光学透明度，速度和耐久性，以及3)展示高效可靠的波导集成。该项目的成果将与快速发展的非易失性光子学领域直接相关，包括自由空间应用，如超表面和光学滤波器，以及用于电信、神经形态计算和量子处理的光子集成电路。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to demonstrate an active optical device that simultaneously exploits the unique properties of phase-change and two-dimensional materials. Active optical devices are currently achieved with platforms that require a constant power supply, which is energy inefficient in optical applications with sporadic modulation, such as light-based data storage. The reversible yet stable optical response of phase-change materials has been explored as a solution to this problem, given that their stable states allow for zero-static power operation. These properties and their nanofabrication versatility have resulted in unprecedented device performances in applications ranging from imaging to on-chip optical computing. However, such applications rely on phase-change materials optimized for the near-infrared spectrum (where telecommunications take place). In contrast, several other classical and quantum technologies would benefit from modulation closer to the visible spectrum. This project aims to fill this gap by developing novel phase-change material and their control mechanism, microheaters, that are transparent in the visible and compatible with any substrate. To create the microheater, this project will explore the unique properties of two-dimensional materials such as graphene, which is transparent and allows for fast heating and cooling speeds. This project’s fast and efficient platform based on phase-change and two-dimensional materials will be broadly applicable to technologies such as metasurfaces, optical filters, novel computing architectures, and reconfigurable (quantum) photonics. This project aims to explore the use of microheaters composed of low-dimensional materials as a method for high-speed and efficient control of low-loss reconfigurable phase-change photonic devices for platforms beyond silicon. Phase-change materials, such as Ge2Sb2Te5, Sb2Se3, etc., are particularly promising for reconfigurable optical devices owing to their fast, dramatic, non-volatile, and reversible change in refractive index. Experimental demonstrations of reconfigurable smart windows, metasurfaces, and photonic devices for memory and computing have reignited interest in these alloys. However, work exploring electrical control over optical phase-change devices has been limited to optically opaque platforms for wavelengths 1.2µm, not compatible with photonic platforms beyond silicon, and have slow heating and cooling rates which limit their switching speed and energy efficiency. Therefore, to fill these critical needs, this project aims to 1) develop new solutions for controlling phase-change materials using a substrate-agnostic platform with ultrafast 2D microheaters, 2) improve the optical transparency, speed, and endurance by developing new phase-change alloys and systematically studying their failure mechanisms, and 3) demonstrate efficient and reliable waveguide integration. The project outcomes will have immediate relevance in the fast-growing field of nonvolatile photonics, including free-space applications such as metasurfaces and optical filters and photonic integrated circuits for telecom, neuromorphic computing, and quantum processing.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.